A WARNING has been issued that a number of East Coast Buses drivers could go on strike in a dispute over pay.
Unite has confirmed that about 130 drivers employed by East Coast Buses, which run services in East Lothian, are involved in an industrial action ballot after rejecting a two-year pay offer.
The ballot opens today (Thursday) and closes on July 24.
If workers vote for industrial action, then strike action could start in early August, potentially impacting on local services and major events such as the Edinburgh Festival and the Oasis concert (August 9) at Murrayfield Stadium.
Sharon Graham, Unite general secretary, said: “Unite’s bus driver members play a vital frontline role in keeping Edinburgh and East Lothian moving.
“East Coast Buses need to make a decent offer and stop treating its workers with disdain.”
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East Coast Buses and Lothian County are both owned by the publicly run Lothian Buses.
A separate pay deal has been successfully negotiated by Unite for Lothian County bus drivers which run services across west Edinburgh and West Lothian.
Lyn Turner, Unite industrial officer, said: “East Coast Buses can quickly resolve this pay dispute if they want to by increasing its offer which was rejected by our drivers.
“If they fail to then industrial action could hit major events including the Fringe Festival and Oasis concert at Murrayfield.”
Willie Hamilton, operations director at Lothian Buses, confirmed they were still hopeful of reaching a resolution.
He said: “We are disappointed that despite constructive and positive discussions with Unite resulting in an overall offer of 9.3 per cent being recommended for acceptance, we have not yet reached agreement with colleagues from East Coast Buses.
“We remain absolutely committed to working jointly with Unite in the hope of reaching a resolution and avoiding industrial action.”
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